FOUNDER and CEO

Alex is the CEO & Founder of Teach For Ethiopia. Alex was born and raised in Ethiopia and is intimately familiar with Ethiopia's diverse culture, which will uniquely position him to navigate the educational landscape. Furthermore, educational equity is very personal to Alex, and it is the story of his father and how education changes generations to come.

Alex holds an MBA from American University in Washington DC and has worked for several reputable firms such as Deloitte & United Health Group. He also had the opportunity to work in Ethiopia as a consultant for a PriceWaterhouseCoopers associate firm. He was part of the team that advised the Addis Ababa Chamber of Commerce, the World Bank Group, USAID, the Ethiopian Privatization Agency, and the Office of the Prime Minister. Alex has several years of experience in management consulting, capacity building, business risk management, and private and social enterprise development.

EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR

Mesfin is a highly qualified individual with a Ph.D. in Education. He specializes in languages in education with a focus on curriculum and instruction. He possesses an international certificate from Africa as a Literacy and Education consultant. Mesfin's expertise has been honed over the years through his work at the Ministry of Education (MoE) in various capacities. He has also worked in several NGOs in multiple roles, including Education Specialist, Director, and Education Advisor.

Mesfin has represented Ethiopia in numerous international conferences as a participant and resource person, specifically in mother tongue-based multilingual education and literacy-related events. His experience as a primary, secondary, and tertiary teacher has been invaluable in shaping his expertise.

HEAD OF TRAINING

Tizazu is Teach For Ethiopia's Head of Training & Leadership Development. He has over 25 years of composite experience in Education and Education Leadership.

Tizazu was also the Head of Education at Save the Children, Ethiopia. Moreover, he worked as an in-country program coordinator for the USAID/ Teaching Learning Materials Production (TLMP) program. It was a program initiated by President George W. Bush as a textbook for Africa program, which Alabama A&M University has implemented.

In addition, Tizazu was the Head of Education Sector Development, Planning, and Policy Analysis for the Federal Ministry of Education.

DEVELOPMENT CONSULTANT

Theo is a development consultant and project manager with over ten years of experience. He has worked with various organizations, including the UN, Siam Commercial Bank, and Fondation Forge, and has focused on sustainability reporting across diverse international contexts. Theo supports Teach For Ethiopia by securing funding that helps children achieve their full potential.

Theo holds a Master of Arts degree from the University of Groningen in the Netherlands, where he specialized in socio-economic factors for development in emerging countries. He has been selected as a Leadership Fellow of the German partner organization of Teach For Ethiopia and started an initiative to support students from underserved schools with preparation for standard high school exit examinations. Theo has also contributed significantly to integrating refugees into the German labor market as part of the youth employability initiative of BCG and BMW.

ALUMNI ASSOCIATE

Eyerus is Teach For Ethiopia's Alumni Associate. She has a Bachelor's degree from Haromaya University's Department of Forestry and completed her Master's in Business Administration (MBA) from Yardstick International College.

During her Fellowship at Teach For Ethiopia, Eyerus has worked with the students, parents, communities, and other stakeholders with a firm focus on preventing students from dropping out of school. She has worked to develop strategies in the classroom for behavioral management and to help students develop a love for reading through her innovative literacy classrooms.

Eyerus is one of the Teach for Ethiopia fellows from the inaugural cohort (2021 -23) who has been recognized for her work on supporting children and leadership by Teach for All. In 2023, she will be representing Ethiopia at the 'Head of Alumni Conference' conducted by Teach For All in London, United Kingdom.

RECRUITMENT ASSOCIATE

Habib Seid is currently working as Teach For Ethiopia's Recruitment Associate. He graduated from Adama Science and Technology University with a BA in Computer Science (2017). During his career, Habib has been recognized by several leadership forums, including the 'Young African Leadership Institute' (YALI) and the 'Civil Society in Development' (CSID). For his leadership and work, he was invited to attend the African Youth Empowerment Conference held at the African Union (AU) Headquarters, Addis Ababa, to discuss Agenda 2063 for the continent.

Before joining Teach For Ethiopia, Habib worked as a marketing manager at a technology company, Intersoft. As a 2021 Teach For Ethiopia Fellowship cohort, he served as a 'Fellow Coordinator,' Bahir Dar. In this role, he was instrumental in organizing and facilitating summer classes for students from disadvantaged backgrounds.

COACH, BAHIR DAR

Betelhem is an engineer turned educator. She graduated from the University of Gondar with a degree in Civil Engineering (2018).

Betelhem focussed on school leadership as a Teach For Ethiopia Fellow. She emerged as a Fellow Advisor for the first cohort of Teach For Ethiopia in Bahir Dar. Leading some of the crucial and visionary Teach For Ethiopia projects, including the 'Gardening Classrooms' in Bahir Dar to help children and adults understand the merits of sustainable agriculture in the famine-struck horn of Africa, has made her a popular leader among the Fellows.

Betelhem has been passionate about girl-child education and working to ensure maximum enrolment in the classrooms followed by minimum drop-outs.

COACH, BAHIR DAR

Roza Tilahun is an English teacher based at Bahir Dar University. She graduated from Bahir Dar University with a BA degree in English Language and Literature in 2016 and completed her Master’s degree in Teaching English as a Foreign Language in 2018.

For the past eight years, Roza has dedicated her expertise to educating students at Bahir Dar University, where she teaches various English courses. In addition, she actively contributes to the Access English Microscholarship program, sponsored by the US government since 2017, imparting English language skills to young learners. Roza has also taught English courses at the STEM Center and facilitates a movie club in the English Language Improvement Centre at Bahir Dar University.

Roza’s influence extends beyond the classroom as she is an advisor to aspiring researchers, assisting them in achieving their academic goals. Moreover, she assumed the role of coordinator at the Women, Children, and Youths Office at Bahir Dar University, where she spearheaded initiatives in two faculties, namely Science and Social Sciences.

She specialises in early literacy and has trained female instructors and nursery nurses from Bahir Dar University, and around 60 government school kindergarten teachers in Bahir Dar and its surrounding areas. She also extends her expertise to English teachers from government schools in Bahir Dar, equipping them with the necessary skills to teach English language students from grade 4 to grade 8.

COACH, DEBRE MARKOS

Yeshwas Molla served as a mathematics teacher during his Teach for Ethiopia Fellowship at the Dibza Primary School, Debre Markos. He graduated from Debre Markos University with a Bachelor of Education in Mathematics (2010) and an MBA from Debre Markos University (2023).

Yeshwas has experience working with various organizations over the last ten years that he has served as an educator. From September 2010 –2016, Yeashwas was dedicated to teaching mathematics at Kuy Secondary and Preparatory School Ethiopia. For his contributions to the school and the community, he got recognized by the Woreda School Administration.

For the next five years, Yeshwas worked in the Gambella region, supporting South Sudanese refugees at the UN Camp. For his valuable contribution to helping refugees, working on conflict resolutions, and his support and guidance, Yeshwas was recognized by the 'Administration for Refugee and Returnee Affairs’ (ARRA) in 2017-2018.

Yeshwas has been a dedicated Fellow and a leader in Debre Markos. His work and vision to inspire others have got recognized by the Amhara Regional Youth Office and the Debre Markos City Education Office!